Before I knew about Meredith College, I knew about the Onyx. My high school sophomore English teacher was a Meredith graduate, and every day she would wear her little black ring encased in silver on her right ring finger. I still didn’t understand why the Onyx was a big deal. What kind of powers could this little black stone have?
And then I went to Meredith.
From the first day students move in to Meredith, they are told about the Onyx. It is a mystic relic that is bestowed upon students their junior year. Freshmen are lucky to catch glimpses of an Onyx. It is a black smooth stone, cut into a perfect oval, stamped with the Meredith Lux, encased in either gold or silver, and held up by two oak leaves. To freshmen the Onyx is like a myth; only seniors and Meredith alum possess this ring in August. It isn’t until October that juniors are inaugurated into the sisterhood with their own Onyxes.
During one's sophomore year, the Onyx becomes a little less elusive. Our friends who were sophomores the year before are now juniors, and many of them have already ordered their Onyxes and have a countdown calendar set for Ring Dinner (yes, it’s that big of a deal). Sophomores begin to feel a pang of jealously in the pit of their stomaches. They still have another year to wait until they have an Onyx of their own. It’s at this moment that people start to realize the importance of the Onyx. I remember being in an education class the Tuesday after Ring Dinner, and my friend was waving her new ring in my face (she’s lucky she didn’t lose a finger that day).
Now I’m going to let you in on a secret: you don’t necessarily have to wait until your junior year to get an Onyx of your very own. Before you start hyperventilating from excitement, there are prerequisites you must reach before buying your ring. All you need is sixty credit hours and the guts (or apathy) to go against Meredith tradition. Simple right?
No.
During the spring of my sophomore year, I had sixty-one credits and a need for an Onyx. I found myself staring at juniors who were in my class, gawking at their Onyxes and wishing I had one of my very one. I went home and told my mom that I was going to get my Onyx and I didn’t care if it wasn’t tradition because I wanted it; I had to have it. However, my mom (who isn’t a Meredith alum) quickly put the kibosh on that dream. She was going to make me wait until junior just like everyone else in my class because “the ring would mean that much more to me.”
So I waited.
Finally it was my junior year. The year. I went to Alumnae House to order my ring and then I had to wait. And wait. And wait some more. Almost two months passed until finally Oct. 19 arrived. I drove to Meredith, ready to pick up my very own Onyx. My mom was right about one thing -- I was ridiculously excited about this ring. If I had to wait any longer, I would’ve gone mad.
Some of you may be thinking to yourself, “Why are you so excited? It’s just a ring. It’s not like it’s an engagement ring or anything.” You’re right. My Onyx isn’t an engagement ring. It’s just a ring that symbolizes the 125 years of unity among exceptional young women. No big deal.
Tradition states that Meredith women aren’t supposed to see the ring on their hand until the night of Ring Dinner. But some traditions are meant to be broken. That’s right, ladies of Meredith College: I... broke... tradition. And I’m so happy I did.
I at least made it back to my car with my ring still in its little black box before sliding the gold band around my finger. It was glorious. I sat in my car with my arm stretched out, admiring my new piece of jewelry. It was perfect. I sat there for a short two minutes before carefully placing my ring back into its little black box.
That was going to be it. I wasn’t going to wear it again until Ring Dinner. I was going to try to be good. But that lasted all of that day, and once I got home from class, I gave into temptation and put my Onyx back on. Every day that week, I put my Onyx on as soon as I got home from class. I know, I know, I’m a terrible person.
Finally Friday arrived. It was Ring Dinner. In a few short hours, I would finally be a part of the sisterhood and I could wear my Onyx in public. As the time grew closer and closer to Ring Dinner, my friends and I could hardly contain our excitement. My roommates had been good all week; they only tried their rings on once to make sure they fit and then they kept them in their boxes until it was time. I think I drove them crazy by blatantly wearing my Onyx throughout the apartment. At least they didn’t hold it against me.
We made it to dinner, dressed up in black, taking pictures like it was our homecoming dance. I thought any minute now, we’d be allowed to slip our rings onto our fingers and be welcomed into the Meredith sisterhood. But no. We were supposed to wait until after dinner to wear our rings.
It... was... torture.
Almost everyone reluctantly complied with this rule. But I had been waiting for this ring since January. It was my Onyx. All I wanted was to be able to wear it. But no. It was staring me in the face in its own little dish not two feet away from me.
Screw it. Dinner was served and I ate it with the company of my Onyx sitting happily on my finger. I like to think that I was doing my ring a favor. I’m sure it wanted to be on my finger as badly as I wanted it on my finger. I heard whispers from girls at our table, “She’s already wearing her Onyx!” Yes, yes I am.
An Onyx is a big deal. The tradition of waiting to wear it builds up anticipation to make the moment more special. At 8:35 p.m. that night, it was announced that we could finally wear our Onyxes. Girls were screaming, crying and laughing. Everyone was happy and in that moment, we were all connected and bound by this beautiful black stone.
Do I feel like I missed out on something by not waiting? Is my Onyx any less special because I chose not to wait? No. I broke tradition by wearing my ring before Ring Dinner. But in a way, it makes it more special. I’ve been wearing my Onyx proudly for almost two weeks, and it still makes my heart swell with pride and happiness every time I glance down at it during my day. I think traditions give an object a mystic power, but I don’t think that’s what makes the Onyx special.
The Onyx represents the sisterhood and unity of Meredith students, past, present and future. It shows the elegance and grace Meredith women bring to their education, career and life. It’s our beacon that guides us and reminds us of what Meredith has done for us.
Sounds pretty special, right? Yeah, the Onyx is kind of a big deal.
